Counting attachment



C. E. CASGRAIN.

COUNTING ATTACHMENT. APPLICATION FILED fIsB. 2, I92o.

1,394,274. @atented Oct. 18, 1921;.

IIIIIH" E, J5 25 Q@ e? UNITED STATES Gamesa. cAsGnAIN, or CHIC/aco, ILLINOIS.

COUNTING ATTACHMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application tiled February 2, 1920. Serial No. 355,544.

To all whom zt may concern.'

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. CAscnAIN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, in the countyof Cook, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Counting Attachments, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an improved counting attachment for machines. This is particularly useful in connection with machines for counting the number of operations performed or the number of parts or devices turned out by the machine.

Among the important objects of the invention are: to provide simple mechanism which can be readily and quickly attached to relatively moving parts of a machine without requiring changes on the machine or special work; to provide such construction and arrangement that the counting mechanism is at a l times inclosed and tampering or fraudulent operation of the counting mechanism prevented; to provide construction and arrangement which will enable locking of the counting mechanism in inoperative position so that the machine may be operated without causing registration of the counting mechanism; to provide construction and arrangement which will permit eicient counting operation of the attachment independently of the length of relative movement between the parts whose operations are to be counted; and in general to provide improved, simplified, and more efficient construction and arrangement in devices of the class referred to.

On the accompanying drawing, I have shown ,the construction of my improved attachment and illustrated its application.

On the drawing- Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a sewing machine for stitching button holes, with my attachment applied,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional v iew of the attachment and the immediate parts of the machine to which it is attached, FFig. 3 is a sectionalf view on plane 3 3,

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on plane 44, Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentaryview similar to Fig. 2 showing the manner of locking the.

counting mechanism against operation.

Describing the attachment, the counting mechanism housing 10 is of rectangular shape which in its front side hasv the sight opening 11. The rear end of the housing is closed by a detachable wall or cover 12. Extending from the housing forwardly thereof and at the inner side is a bracket 13 by means of which the housing may be conveniently fastened to a machine part. Ad-

jacent the opposite side the lower wallhas the opening 14, the walls adjacent which extend downwardlya distance to form guide sections 15 and 16.

Suitably supported within the housing behind thesight opening 11 is mechanism v comprising decimal order counting wheels 17 and the operating lever or arm 18. Any suitable counting mechanism can be provided, the operation of such counting mechanism being well known in the art. The arm 18 projects downwardly to the opening 14 to be in the path of the operating bar 19. When the attachment is applied to a machine, the housing and the bar move relatively, the bar being of a width to lit and be guided between the extended walls 15 and 16. In Figs. l and 2 the housing is shown secured to the movable sewing head H of a button hole machine while the bar 19 is secured on the bed plate B of the machine. The housing is secured by means of a screw 2O passing through the bracket 13 and threading into the head H, while the bar 19 is fastened by means of the screw 21 threading into the bed plate. Referring particularly to Figs. 2 and 4, the bar 19 is Patented oet. 1s, 1921.v

the counting i of rectangular cross-section and has at its front end the longitudinally extending slot 22 therethrough. The inner edge of the slot is beveled to form the seat 23 for the pawl spring 24 which extends forwardly through the slot and is normally held by its spring action against the abutment 25 extending into the slot from the opposite side of the bar. Near its free end, the spring has the V-shaped ridge 26 bent therein which is of suiiicient length to engage with the lower end of thearm 18 during relative movement between the bar and the housing, such engagement causing the arm to be swung back and forth to operate the counting wheels of the counting mechanism to thereby count the number of relative movements between the attachment arts.

By suita le spring mechanism (not shown) forming part of the counting mechanism, the arm 18 is normally held toward the rear Wall 12 and as the head H travels rearwardly on the machine bed (Fig. 5) the arm would encounter the ridge 26 on the pawl spring 'andthe arm will be swung toward the front of the housing (Fig. 2) the counting mechanism being actuated during such forward swing. During forward shift of the head H the arm 18 is restored to its normal position by the counting mechanism spring ready to be again received by the rldge 26 during the next stroke of the head. The ridge 26 being yielding by virtue of the spring 211 the lower edge of the rear wall 12 can readily pass thereover as the houslng travels. In order to prevent release ofthe arm 18 from the ridge 26 when the arm has been swung forwardlyand thereby to prevent the arm from being suddenly swung to its normal position by the counter spring mechanism, provision is made to limitthe movement ofthe housing relative to the bar during rearward travel of the head H. For

this purpose stop pins or abutments 27 are provided on top of the bar 19 behind the ridge 26 tov receive the lower edge of the front wall of the housing after the housing has traveled a distance over the bar 19 and relative thereto. The engagement takes place just after the arm 18 has been carried by the ridge to its front position (Fig. 2). To then permit further rearward movement of the housing and the bar to the rearward end of the stroke of the head H a compression spring 28 is inserted in the slot 29 provided at the front end of the bar 19, this spring abutting at one end against the end wall 30 of the bar and at its other end abutting against stud or screw 21 which holds the bar 19 on the bed plate B of the machine. The spring absorbs the shock of the blow of the housing against the pins 27 and permits travel of the bar 19 with the housing so that the head H may nish its rearward travel.

When the head again travels forwardly the housing and bar travel together until the rear end of the slot 29 engages with the stud 21, then the housing travels alone and the arm 18 is permitted to only gradually return to its normal position (dotted lines Fig. 2). It will be noted that at all times the bar is below the opening 14 of the housing and such opening is always closed so that the arm 18 cannot be tampered with and the counter mechanism fraudulently operated independently of operation of the machine to which the attachment is applied.

As it may be desirable to operate 'a machine without operating the counting attachment, I provide mechanism for preventingactuation of the counting mechanism while the machine is in operation. Referring to Figs. 2 and 5, a vertical slot 31 is cut in the rear wall 12 through which passes the set screw 32 into threaded engagement with a guard plate 33. By turning the knurled head of the set screw the plate can be locked in any position against the inner face of the wall 12. Normally, the plate is held in its upper position as indicated in Fig. 2 so that the arm 18 is free to coperate with the ridge 26 to actuate the counting mechanism. rlibe plate at its lower end is turned forwardly to form a guard foot 35 which has the slot 36 therein. Where it is desired to prevent actuation of the arm 18 the plate is shifted downwardly and locked by means of the set screw. When thus shifted downwardly, the slot 36 receives the lower end of the arm 18 so that during relative movement between the housing and the bar 19 the foot/35 receives the ridge 26 instead of the arm and operation of the arm is thereby prevented. The machine may thus be operated for any length of time without causing operation of the counting attachment. As soon as the plate 33 is raised the arm is again free for cooperation with the ridge 26.

l thus provide a very simple, eiicient and reliable counting attachment which can be readily and quickly applied to machines.

l claim as follows:

- 1. ln a counting attachment of the class described, the combination of a housing having an opening in its bottom wall, counting wheels arranged within said housing, an actuating arm extending downwardly from said counting -wheels to said opening, a bar closing said opening, said housing having guide walls for. guiding said bar during relative movement between said bar and housing, a yielding pawl` ridge on said bar for coperating w1th said arm to cause operation of the counting wheels during relative movement between 'said bar and housing, and means for obstructing operative cooperation of said ridge with said arm during relative movement of said bar and housing, said pawl being yielding whereby it will glide past said arm when obstructed without causing operation thereof.

2. In a counting attachment of the class described, the combination of a housing having an'opening in its bottom wall, counting mechanism within said housing and an actuating lever extending therefrom to said opening, an actuating bar, guide extensions on said housing for guiding said bar, a yieldable pawl ridge extending upwardlyfrom said bar to Saidv opening for cooperating with said arm to cause actuation thereby of said counting mechanism during relative movement between said bar and housing, and a shoe adapted to be positioned at the end of said arm to prevent operative engagement of said ridge with said arm. A

3. In a counting attachment of the class described, the combination of a housing having an opening in its bottom wall, counting mechanism within said housing, an actuating arm extending from said counting mechansm downwardly into said opening, an actuating bar always closing said opening, a

depress'ible awl ridge on said bar extending upwardly tlrough said opening for coperating with said arm to eect swing thereof and actuation of the counting mechanism during relative movement of said bar and housing, a plate shiftable up and down in said housing, the lower end of said plate being deflected to form a shoe for receivin the lower end of said arm, said shoe preventing operative engagement of said ridge with sald Varm during relative movement of said bar and housing.

In a counting attachment of the class described, the combination of a housing having an opening in its lower end, counting mechanism within said housing visible from the exterior thereof, an actuating arm extending from said counting mechanism downwardly into said opening, an actuating bar always disposed to close said' opening, a yieldable pawl ridge on said bar extending upwardly through said opening to co-act with and swing with said arm to causeY operation of the counting mechanism during relative movement between said housing bar, a shoe, and means for setting Said shoe and 1920 below said arm to prevent engagement of said pawl ridge with said arm and thereby prevent actuationof the counting mechanism during relative movement between said bar and housing.

5. In a counting attachment of the class described, the combination of a housing havg ing an opening in its lower end, counting mechanism within said lhousing visible from the exterior thereof, an actuating arm extending downwardly from said counting mechanism into said opening, an actuating bar below said opening, a depressible rid e on said bar extending upwardly through sald opening to coperate with and swing said arm during relative movement between said housing and bar thereby to cause actuation of said counting mechanism, and means for obstructing said arm against actuation, said ridge being depressible whereby to glide past said arm when obstructed to thereby avoid operating said counting mechanism.

In witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my name this 29th day of January, A. D.

oHARLEs E. ,CASGRAIN 

